Mavic specs versus Phantom 3 Standard - are they that different?

[Ian in London]

Well, I think most of us on here would argue there's a huge difference, but as I had a few people ask me what to suggest if they couldn't afford a Mavic or were starting out, I looked into the actual specs and compared them for a bit of fun. Was actually a bit surprised in the end considering the difference in price... Is the Mavic worth the extra money?

Look forward to the drone police attacks on flying two drones without due care and attention....

Cheers,
Ian

https://www.youtube.com/IaninLondon

 

[Cyberpower678]

Spes aren't everything.

You have a better camera, better OA, better portability, better range, better flying time, and better (or worse) software depending on if you're NFZ "victim" or not.

 

[Harrissment]

It's better in every way! Nothin more need to be said.

 

[Ian in London]

Spes aren't everything.

You have a better camera, better OA, better portability, better range, better flying time, and better (or worse) software depending on if you're NFZ "victim" or not.

How is the camera better? That's actually my main point here; the one thing that is pretty idenitcal apart from the max bitrate......

Ian

 

[Harrissment]

How is the camera better? That's actually my main point here; the one thing that is pretty idenitcal apart from the max bitrate......

Ian


YouTube / Ian in London

Standard is 2.7k lower bitrate camera

Mavic is 4k higher nitrate and a third the size of the standard one

 

[Ian in London]

It's better in every way! Nothin more need to be said.

True, but as you saw in the vid, it's about what the actual differences are and whether they're important to someone starting out. A grand is a lot of money to shell out on a new hobby.
The camera is actually pretty similar; for stills it's identical, and for video, as I showed, it's bit-rate is indeed lower meaning you can only shoot 2.7k instead of 4k, and can't get above 30fps in this mode. But that's still better than Blu-ray!

Don'tt get me wrong; I love my Mavic; but if size and range aren't crucial, then all I'm saying is that a Standard at a thrid of the price could be a pretty good start....

Cheers

Ian

 

[Harrissment]

I have had a standard and I hated it after about 20 flights, signal dropping all the time losing video after about 75ft it's was terrible I sold it after about 30+ flights

 

[scooot]

My first drone was a p3 standard.It was a piece of crap.I got constant disconnects if I went any further than 300m,constant compass errors and it looks very toy like (plastic).
I returned it after 2 weeks and made the extra investment for the mavic.I waited nearly 4 months to receive it.
Was it worth it,you bet it was.Every time I fly my mavic i still find this drone amazes me.I do appreciate the extra cost involved but if my only option was to have a p3 standard then unfortunately I would of been finished with this hobby before it began.

 

[dewster]

No flyaways. The P3 had a spate of random flyaways. DJI may have fixed the issue, but it was enough to keep me away.

The Mavic has two IMUs, two compasses, and a dedicated processor to error check the sensors to avoid errant behavior.

That sold me on the Mavic.

 

[Kilrah]

P3S is WiFi. Avoid WiFi like the plague if you want any kind of decent live downlink and range. Really worth moving up to the P3A or anything else that has LightBridge/Ocusync video transmission.

The poor transmission/range can offset the savings and make it a poor, frustrating experience that puts someone off the whole thing for wrong reasons since it isn't representative of current gear anymore.

 

[Ian in London]

My first drone was a p3 standard.It was a piece of crap.I got constant disconnects if I went any further than 300m,constant compass errors and it looks very toy like (plastic).
I returned it after 2 weeks and made the extra investment for the mavic.I waited nearly 4 months to receive it.
Was it worth it,you bet it was.Every time I fly my mavic i still find this drone amazes me.I do appreciate the extra cost involved but if my only option was to have a p3 standard then unfortunately I would of been finished with this hobby before it began.

lol... man you really hated it
The look is pretty standard for the P3 and P4 models; but I have to admit, the range issues did annoy me. As I said in the vid, I managed 800 yards but put trees anywhere near you and that halved to literally a 200-300 yards.
The Mavic was so solid connection-wise when I upgraded.....but then for the money, I expected that... .

Ian

 

[Ian in London]

No flyaways. The P3 had a spate of random flyaways. DJI may have fixed the issue, but it was enough to keep me away.

The Mavic has two IMUs, two compasses, and a dedicated processor to error check the sensors to avoid errant behavior.

That sold me on the Mavic.

The very first week of the Mavic I had two 'ATTI' mode situations in mid flight and one of them saw the Mavic travel over 800 yards towards some power lines before I was able to regain control.... That really put the wind up me and you still hear of random ATII mode attacks from Mavic users...
They really should make it clear that if you see ATTI on your remote mid-flight, you have an issue! The remote warns you every few seconds about a slight breeze, but not a major thing like it losing its bearings and going into ATTI mode... (IMHO )

Ian

YouTube / Ian in London

 

[dewster]

The very first week of the Mavic I had two 'ATTI' mode situations in mid flight and one of them saw the Mavic travel over 800 yards towards some power lines before I was able to regain control.... That really put the wind up me and you still hear of random ATII mode attacks from Mavic users...
They really should make it clear that if you see ATTI on your remote mid-flight, you have an issue! The remote warns you every few seconds about a slight breeze, but not a major thing like it losing its bearings and going into ATTI mode... (IMHO )

Ian

YouTube / Ian in London

Wow. I'll consider myself lucky. The only time I get Atti mode is when trying to fly indoors with poor GPS reception. I've heard of people flying indoors with spotty GPS and having the craft dart off.

I don't know why DJI doesn't have a warning read: "You're on your own. " message when things go haywire. Lol

 

[Ian in London]

I don't know why DJI doesn't have a warning read: "You're on your own. " message when things go haywire. Lol

Exactly! That would be the most useful of all the beeps and warnings they throw at you!

Ian

 

[kens65fb]

I have own both a P3 Standard & a Mavic, and fly each one. ---- NO CONTEST !!!

Camera -----------Mavic 4K video, is better than the P3 Standard 2.7K video.
RC Controller --- Mavic controller is smaller, lighter, and feels better in hand. also the LED telemetry readout, is much more visible in bright sunshine, than the phone's display
Handling -------- Mavic a little slower but is more nimble and RTH is more precise.
Range -------------No contest, hands down, the Mavic has much better range, and reliability.
Battery Life ------ About the same.
Size --------------- Mavic is much more portable.
Looks ------------ Mavic looks cool, where as the P3 Standard looks dated.
Obstacle Avoidance --- Mavic yes ---P3S no

 

[FlyGuy8675309]

The P3 is what I suggest people get for a starter drone. It's good to learn on and then you can decide if you want portability or something with a little more heft like the P4 series. Also it's not too expensive, and if (when) you crash it you're not out that much.

But comparing a P3 to a Mavic? Apples and oranges.. but Mavic wins.

 

[Ian in London]

I have own both a P3 Standard & a Mavic, and fly each one. ---- NO CONTEST !!!

Camera -----------Mavic 4K video, is better than the P3 Standard 2.7K video.
RC Controller --- Mavic controller is smaller, lighter, and feels better in hand. also the LED telemetry readout, is much more visible in bright sunshine, than the phone's display
Handling -------- Mavic a little slower but is more nimble and RTH is more precise.
Range -------------No contest, hands down, the Mavic has much better range, and reliability.
Battery Life ------ About the same.
Size --------------- Mavic is much more portable.
Looks ------------ Mavic looks cool, where as the P3 Standard looks dated.
Obstacle Avoidance --- Mavic yes ---P3S no

I know it's no contest.... The point I'm trying to make in the vid is that if you're starting out in this game, and range and size isn't critical for you, then the P3 isn't a bad choice at all as the other specs are very similar. Is 4K over 2.7k really that important for most people for video? Hence the point about blu-ray

Ian

 

[stratos]

Well I think that for a beginner is fine a P3 just to know what is all about etc. For me I always wanted a drone and my first was the Mavic. I always hated the shape of the Phatom line for me is so inconvenient

 

[namja]

The thread title asks if they are that different.

In a broad, very general sense, no. They are both drones that fly and take videos and pictures. If you compare a P3 and a Mavic and an iPhone, then the first two are basically identical and the iPhone is completely different.

In a more specific sense, yes. Among recreational drones, they are very different machines. And you cannot just take range and size out of the equation. Those are critical components of making the Mavic a super sweet machine. If anything, I would take the price out of the equation. In the US, the P3 is about $500 and the Mavic is about $1000. If I only had $500, thus my option was either P3 or nothing, then I would choose nothing. If I wanted a drone badly enough, then I would eat uber-cheap for 2 months ($1/day on food instead of $10/day on food). At the end of 2 months, I would have saved an additional $500, PLUS lost some much needed weight, and I'd have a Mavic.

 

[Kestrel]

How is the camera better? That's actually my main point here; the one thing that is pretty idenitcal apart from the max bitrate......

Ian

YouTube / Ian in London

I have both and I can tell that the the mavic's camera is more crisper, when I go back and watch my P3S footage vs my Mavic footage there is a clear winner, and its not the P3S. Also the range on the Mavic is WAY better, its actually the reason I bought the Mavic. The standards range is horrendous without mods and even then a stock Mavic can beat a modded standard in range.

And trust me even if new people say they don't care about range, they will once they get a P3S I was getting on average 400-500 feet before RTH kicked in.

The P3S was my first DJI drone not my first drone and I wouldn't recommend it for the first time user, you will out grow the P3S really quickly, I bought the P3S in December of last year by February I had the Mavic. The camera is ok but the constant RTH's really ruined it. If you are taking video literally right next to you then its ok I guess but anything else heck no.

People are better off saving up for the P4 or Mavic than they are just buying the P3S

And yes by specs they are very different.